[CHAPTER XIII]
BATTLE HONOURS FOR SERVICES IN INDIA, 1818-1826
Kirkee—Seetabuldee—Nagpore—Maheidpore—Corygaum—Nowah—Bhurtpore—Hindoostan—India.
THE SECOND MAHRATTA WAR, 1817-18.
The conclusion of the First Mahratta War of 1803-04 left us nominally at peace with all the ruling Sovereigns in Central and Southern India. At the same time, the result of that campaign had in no way impaired their power for evil. Their armies were, so far as numbers went, enormously powerful, and in a measure well organized and equipped. In most cases they had been drilled by European instructors, and certainly for irregular warfare they constituted a very formidable foe. Although they had accepted peace, it was well known that there was not a ruling Prince in India who would not willingly see our downfall; and in the event of war with one, it was doubtful who we should not find arrayed against us. The Governor-General, then, had to prepare for an alliance of all the central and probably of one or more of the southern rulers. Our possible enemies were the Peishwa, the hereditary chief of the Mahratta Confederacy; Scindia, the Maharajah of Gwalior; Holkar, the Maharajah of Indore; the Maharajah of Nagpore; the Nizam of Hyderabad, in whose dominions there was considerable disaffection; Ameer Khan, a Moslem freebooter, who, though possessing neither territory nor population, had nevertheless a powerful and well-disciplined force at his command; and, lastly, the Pindarees.
It must be borne in mind that at this time we had Subsidiary Forces, composed of native troops, maintained by the different rulers, but officered by Englishmen, at Hyderabad, Nagpore, Poona, and Gwalior; and through these officers, as well as through the Residents at the Courts of these Princes, we were well able to judge of the numbers and value of the forces that could be brought against us. These forces were estimated to be as follows:
| Cavalry. | Infantry. | Guns. | |
| Scindia | 14,250 | 16,250 | 140 |
| Holkar | 20,000 | 7,900 | 107 |
| The Peishwa | 28,000 | 13,800 | 37 |
| Nagpore | 15,700 | 17,000 | 85 |
| Ameer Khan | 12,000 | 10,000 | 80 |
| The Nizam | 25,000 | 20,000 | 240 |
| Pindarees | 15,000 | 1,500 | 20 |
With but few exceptions, the cavalry was undisciplined and unorganized, but well mounted, and the men as a rule admirable swordsmen. To combat this possible alliance, the Marquess of Hastings determined to utilize the troops of all three Presidencies, and to take the field in person, and so assume the direction of the operations. The Bengal army would deal with Scindia, and then push to the south and west to assist the troops of the other Presidencies. The Madras troops, with Secunderabad as their base, after assuring the neutrality of the Nizam, would operate from the south, whilst the Bombay army was left to deal with the Peishwa, whose disaffection was beyond doubt.